Representing 850 years of service to the Pleasanton school district, 35 retiring district employees were recognized for their dedication to students and education during the “Salute to Service” event earlier this month.
“I hope the people retiring today realize that they contributed to creating the culture of the district where we have high standards and strive to do better,” said Superintendent John Casey to the audience of school employees. “That is the legacy you leave for years to come, and for that we say ‘thank you.'”
Teachers, classified employees and administrators were among those retiring, including former Amador Valley High School principal Steve Dellanini. Dellanini has worked in education for 36 years, 27 of which were in the Pleasanton school district. During his career, he has held a variety of roles, first as a teacher, then principal of Amador and later as assistant superintendent of human resources. He finishes his career as coordinator of apprentices and internship programs in the district.
“The years as principal of Amador were among my favorite,” Dellanini said. “Those years, my own kids were students there and many of my friends’ kids were students there. We had an incredible group of students, teachers, and started a lot of traditions that go on today.
“My years teaching were also great years,” he added. “I loved being a teacher and working directly with the kids.”
Kevin Fennell, a P.E. teacher at Harvest Park Middle School, is also retiring this year after teaching in Pleasanton for 41 years. One of his claims to fame is that 58 teachers in the district are also his former students.
“When I first started teaching, we used to have to chase the cows off the field,” he remembered. “The area was farmland and the cows would come down and eat the grass.”
Before teaching in Pleasanton, Fennell taught at Oakland Technical High School and Skyline High School, also in Oakland.
“I wanted to give back to the community since I had lived in Oakland and Berkeley all through college,” he said. He received his bachelor’s degree and teaching credential from UC Berkeley. When the jobs in Oakland dried up, Fennell said he was offered a job in Pleasanton, a town he hadn’t even visited yet, but he took the offer and has been here ever since.
“This year was one of the best,” Fennell said. “I have a great group of eighth graders and a lot of good memories of the kids.”
Christina Robinson has also taught in the district for many years, 38 to be exact, and she spent all those years teaching first, second and third grade at Donlon Elementary School.
“Ever since I was a kid around 8 or 9 years old, I wanted to be a teacher,” Robinson said. Over the course of her years as a teacher, Robinson said she has seen many changes in the classroom.
“Class size reduction has been a really good thing,” she said. “It extended my teaching career quite a bit. But even with only 20 children in the classroom it’s a lot harder because of the state-mandated, high-stakes testing where you have to show improvement every year.”
Being at Donlon for the entirety of her career, Robinson said she feels a strong bond with all of her co-workers.
“This school and the people I work with have become my family,” she said. “It’s being a part of something that is bigger than yourself.”
Although she is retiring, Robinson will still be helping out around the district by volunteering at Donlon and working with at-risk children. Fennell and Dellanini said they both plan spending their new found time traveling. Fennell is going down to Baja California for the summer where he is going to build a shack outside of Ensenada.
“I’ve been going there for quite a while and waiting for this time to build something,” he said. He plans on staying there through “surf season” and will then leave in November to go up to the mountains for “ski season.”
“Being a P.E. teacher, I’m really physically active,” he said, noting that his other claim to fame is his ability to rip a phonebook in half.
Dellanini said he plans to travel to Italy with his wife of two years, Sally, who retired from the school district last year. The two were married in Italy, and Dellanini said they both have a special connection to the country. But even with his traveling, Dellanini still plans to help out at the district, volunteering as a coach for new administrators.
“We help them work through problems and use the experience and knowledge we have in education,” he said. “I’ll also be doing some projects for Pleasanton Unified, and just enjoying life.”
Many of this year’s retirees spent more than 20 years working in the district, and 13 spent more than 30 years. The following teachers and classified employees are also retiring this year: Karelyn Adams, Mary Berget, Constance Bishop, Judith Brandon, Judith Brandt, Karla Bruen, Marsha Buck, Judith Burt, Laurence Constanza, Jean Ellis, Laura Fereira, Susan Ferrari, Gena Gatlin, Claire Gaudiano, Carol Johnson, Susan Kast, Robert Kirkbride, Franciska Locus, Carolyn Machi, Barbara McCabe, Sandra McClary, Suzanne Murphy, Virginia Nacamu, John O’Brien, Karen Price, Nancy Ann Rowell, Sandra Sansoe, Gerald Shelley, Lynne Sorensen, Frank Sullivan, David Young and Esther Zierau.
“Whether a teacher or custodian or secretary, you’ve had an impact on the future citizens of our community,” Board President Steve Pulido told the retirees. “Thank you for your endless hours of service.”
